


Son of Cronus and Rhea

by arttemis



Category: Assassin's Creed - All Media Types
Genre: Aquaphobia, Drowning, Gen, Past Child Abuse, Sibling Bonding, alexios doesn't know how to swim, change my mind, so expect it to be pretty average lmao, this is a first draft so read at your own risk babey, this is mostly action scene practice
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-27
Updated: 2018-11-27
Packaged: 2019-08-30 03:55:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,805
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16757194
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/arttemis/pseuds/arttemis
Summary: Alexios curses as salt water gets into his eyes and more floods into his mouth.Fuck.





	Son of Cronus and Rhea

**Author's Note:**

> This is a first draft! I'll fuck with it later and add more descriptions. You have been warned.

Alexios does not like boats.

There’s something in the way the walls shake with every movement and how he can always hear the waves battering against the hull like they want to be inside that unsettles him. He doesn’t like that if the ship sank he would be doomed to sink to the bottom of the ocean, Poseidon claiming his body with either his sharks or a watery grave. 

Kassandra, on the other hand, takes to living on the ship like a gull. She sings with the crew, drinks with Barnabas and becomes a renowned warrior on land and sea within her first week aboard the Adrestia. 

His _mater_ was a pirate before Kassandra found her, she had told Alexios so when he asked how she could climb the mast and leap onto an enemy’s boat like she was merely crossing a rooftop. Had worked with Xenia, the pirate queen of Keos. 

Alexios knew the name. Barely, the cult had kept him in the dark about most of their targets unless he was directly involved, but, he knew it. Alexios had seen a battle involving the pirate queen and her fleet from the shoreline of one of the smaller islands. Perhaps that was what had ignited this fear of his.

Although, he is hesitant to call it a fear. It's not like it isn't justified to be worried about the ocean. It's known for being horribly temperamental. Being trapped in a tiny wooden box and at complete mercy to Poseidon's whims really doesn't inspire Alexios' confidence. But, it's not a fear. It's merely an instinctual reaction to he, a human, being somewhere he shouldn't.

Nikolaos and Sentor aren't difficult to understand. Stentor still fights like a newborn fawn if the ship rocks the wrong way but the Wolf of Sparta doesn't flinch. Years of commanding troops, Alexios assumes, will do that to a man. 

Still, he digresses. He is left with the options of sleeping on the deck or under it in a room crowded with hammocks and the Daughters of Artemis. Most nights he sleeps on the deck. In case the ship is struck and he needs a fast exit. It is cold and the sea spray rubs salt into any open wounds and if Alexios didn't know any better he would say that it is Poseidon himself, punishing Alexios for his transgressions as the Cult’s weapon and his arrogance at assuming his own godliness. 

He thinks of the story of Medusa and how Poseidon is not exactly merciful nor understanding. It’s the type of thing the god would do. Yet, enduring his wrath is better than hearing the things Kassandra gets up to in the night with her crew. 

Sometimes, they drink together. As a _family_. It is nice. Everyone, even Nikolaos, forgets their pasts after a few glasses of whatever it is Barnabas keeps locked away. It is always loud and Alexios still hasn't quite gotten the hang of socialising with people who don't want to use him to topple the Greek empire. He likes spending time with his family though. 

The fact that the hangover the next morning gives him an excuse to throw up over the side of the boat the minute they hit rough seas has nothing to do with it.

It's the middle of the night. The moon is missing from the sky and the clouds hide the stars, making the ocean nothing more than an inky blackness. Kassandra shouts an order and the boat jolts to a stop. Alexios has to grab onto the railing to stop him falling flat on his face. He still ends up on one knee. 

One of the Daughters of Artemis notices and laughs under her breath on her way to the hatch. He should learn her name. Alexios takes a deep breath and pulls himself upright. His hands are shaking a little.

Okay, Alexios fucking hates boats.

He hates them. This stupid, fucking _maláka_ ship and its bastard of a navigator. Alexios hates them. Fuck. He needs to punch someone. Stentor, hopefully. He doesn't feel secure enough in his place in the family to start a fight with anyone else. He can probably pass it off as sparring. 

”Hey!” he yells over the sound of the wind. A few heads turn in his direction. Alexios ignores them. Stentor is on the other end of the ship, towards the Sphinx figurehead. It's too dark to make out his expression from this distance. He's staring straight at Alexios. Good. He hopes he's angry. 

Alexios stalks as menacingly as he can towards Stentor. Considering that, despite weeks on the ship he still hasn't gained his sea legs, he thinks he does a pretty good job. Stentor looks angrier up close.

”Yes?” Stentor crosses his arms over his chest and glares down at Alexios like he can cow him. It's the first time Stentor hasn't gone straight for his spear around him. Too bad he was about to shatter that trust. 

A quick look around the ship shows that everyone is below deck. Except for Barnabas and Kassandra. It will do.

Alexios swings low, ducks between Stentor’s legs and kicks his leg into the back of his knees. He springs up and away at the same moment Stentor goes down. Stentor yells a wordless sound as he falls. Alexios grins. He climbs the bow, careful to move quickly but not let Stentor out of his sight. The figurehead is too smooth for his boots to catch anywhere. Alexios crouches and grips the wings instead. 

Stentor levers himself to his feet with the butt of his spear like he's injured. Which he can't be because they're all required to get checked by Nikolaos after a battle and while irritating made sense. 

”What, ” Stentor spits, ”is your problem?” 

His problem is this _fucking_ ship. 

Kassandra and Barnabas are still talking at the helm but watching the pair of them now. 

”Spar with me, ” Alexios says. He doesn't bother with his sword. Won't need it. He shifts his grip on the Sphinx a little. Stentor doesn’t let go of his spear but he takes a step towards Alexios.

He’s expecting him to climb up too. Stentor doesn’t. Instead, he lunges forward, grabs Alexios’ ankle and yanks him down. Alexios’ head smacks against the deck hard enough that his vision goes black. It’s not nearly enough to keep him down though. The cult had beaten into him the danger of leaving oneself vulnerable for even a moment.

They circle each other, doing their best to keep their feet planted. The seas are calm tonight. It isn’t too hard. Alexios shakes his head to clear it. He feints closer to see if Stentor will flinch. He does. Turns to his side to put his non-dominant leg behind him like he’s protecting it. Definitely injured then.

Stentor would be having words with Nikolaos after this. Or Alexios would be ratting him out.

It works to Alexios' advantage though. He ducks under the heavy, too-slow swing of Stentor's spear and comes in close enough that the weapon is practically useless. Stentor doesn't try to make room and just throws the spear to the side. He jabs a fist into Alexios' belly and brings his elbow down onto the back of his neck when Alexios bends to clutch his stomach. 

It forces him into an awkward position, torso nearly parallel to the deck. Alexios braces his foot behind him and charges forward, arms stretched to the sides. It's difficult to get the momentum needed to knock Stentor off his feet with a standing start. They both slam into the railing on the ship. The wood is solid and doesn't so much as groan at the treatment.

Stentor recovers fast. Leans further into the railing and gets his legs up so he can kick Alexios away with them. There's a lot of force in it. Especially considering the bastard is _injured_

There's a small cracking sound and then sharp, hot pain in his chest that Alexios recognises. He stumbles backwards, even further than he was kicked so he tilts on the edge of the boat and swears. Unfortunately, he doesn't have much time to dwell on it because he trips over the side of the ship and into the ocean.

He didn't even to get to punch Stentor in his stupid fucking face.

Hitting the water is like hitting cement. His back stings and his ribs scream. There's the slap of his skin hitting the still surface and then water fills his ears as he sinks. He flails and tries to stop himself going any deeper. Alexios curses as salt water gets into his eyes and more floods into his mouth. 

_Fuck_.

This better not be how he dies. A drowning. His sister had fought the Minotaur and he is going to be beaten by a bay. 

He can't tell which way to swim. Not that he could swim. The cult had graciously neglected that part of his training. It's too dark to see the sky and the hit to the head had disoriented him too much for this. There's a sort of blur of light that Alexios thinks _might_ be the Adrestia but it could as easily be a group of jellyfish and wouldn't that be fun? He stops moving his arms when he realises it's just making bubbles and probably going to attract the wrong kind of attention.

There's something pulling him further downwards. Alexios kicks out and finds it almost impossible. Right, he's wearing his boots. At least he knows which way the air is.

Alexios chokes on more water, get his hands around his throat like he's being strangled and he can simply pry the hands off. There's a splash that he doesn't notice and then a hand wrapped around his waist.

For a moment he has the ridiculous notion that it is Ketos here to devour him. Then, Kassandra's face swims into view. She kicks upwards in long powerful strokes until Alexios' head breaches the surface. He coughs up water and doesn't pretend that he isn't clinging to her. The air still has that dampness in it, the salt and the smell of ocean but it tastes almost sweet now that he's been without it. 

"You alright?" Kassandra asks. He nods and wipes his mouth with the back of his hand. It comes away covered in bile. Alexios fucking hates boats _and_ the ocean. She steers them towards the ship and pushes him so he can grab the rungs. Alexios thinks about what a bastard Poseidon is and looks up.

Stentor and Barnabas are leaning over the side, worry on both their faces. Alexios groans and rubs at his chest. His ribs are at least fractured. He raises his leaden arm and makes a rude gesture in Stentor's direction.

**Author's Note:**

> I just finished the family storyline and I love Alexios. (It's also why I haven't updated any of my RDR2 stuff yet but that's coming soon)
> 
> I'm still not over "you take everything so personally." As the youngest sibling in my family, I can confirm that is prime little brother/sister dialogue.
> 
> Please let me know if you see any weird formatting errors or spelling mistakes!!
> 
> Come talk to me about how Alexios did nothing wrong or anything else [on my tumblr](https://lanternrayner.tumblr.com/)
> 
>  
> 
> (feel free to send me some prompts too!)


End file.
